Historical Context of the Baroque Period
"an age of opulence, as inspired by the court of Louis XIV of France and driven by the new wealth of the middle classes"
Louis XIV, "the Sun King", was the longest reigning monarch in European history (1643-1715). Under his rule, French culture flowered, especially dance and music.
Louis XIV! (CRAZY HAIR) Arts flourished and science broadened the understanding of the natural world. Religious conflict. Revolution in England in 1648, which saw the trial and execution of the King and the abolition of monarchy and the House of Lords. England was gaining lots of territory. In 1618, the mounting tensions between the Protestants and Catholics launched the Thirty Years' War in Europe (fought principally in Germany, but involved most of the major European continental powers). Pilgrims! Science: Galileo Galilei discovered a number of natural laws and also invented the microscope, contructed a telescope, and observed the planets during this period, only to be later condemned by Rome for his views. His conflict with the Roman Catholic Church is taken as a major early example of the conflict of authority and freedom of thought, particularly with science, in Western society. Johannes Kepler engaged in the study of astronomy and developed the laws of planetary motion in 1609. Brilliant mathematicians such as Rene Descartes, Blaise Pascal, Pierre de Fermat and Isaac Newton developed the foundations for analytic geometry, probability, and integral calculus, while Robert Boyle discovered the laws of pressure. Galileo! In medical science, William Harvey studied the circulation of blood and the function of the heart. Physicians studied diabetes and scarlet fever, and developed a cure for scurvy. Meanwhile, Italian physician Santorio Santorii measured human body temperature with his invention, the thermometer. Other inventions of the period include the syringe, slide rule, barometer, wind gauge, pressure cooker, tuning fork, and steam engine. The visual arts during the period were celebrated as never before, as individual patrons such as popes, kings, and emperors began commissioning masterpieces throughout Europe. Baroque painters include Michelangelo Merisi (Caravaggio), Annibale Carracci, and Rembrandt van Rijn. Also, a particular Baroque style of painting which arose in Rome in the 1620s culminated in the impressive painted ceilings and church decor of Pietro da Cortona, Guido Reni, and Il Guercino. Perhaps the most beloved Baroque architect and sculptor is Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini, who designed the "baldachin" (canopy) above the famed altar of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Baroque architecture emphasized monumentality, movement, dramatic spatial and lighting sequences, and a rich interior decoration using contrasting surface textures, vivid colors, and luxurious materials. Literature of the Baroque style is epitomized in the writings of Giambattista Marino in Italy, Luis de Gongora in Spain, and Martin Opitz in Germany. English Metaphysical poetry, as popularized by John Donne, also emerged during this period. John Milton authored his famous epic poem, "Paradise Lost" in 1667 (which expressed an incredible amount of profound ideas). John Milton! Germany: (1608) Establishment of the Protestant Union (1609) Formation of the Catholic League (1618-1648) Thirty Years' War (1701) King of Prussia crowned (1702-14) War of Spanish Succession (1740) Frederick the Great crowned King of Prussia (1740-42) The Silesian War Frederick the Great!
CHAPTAH 9 concerto + concerto grosso: three movement piece for soloist and orchestra, 1st mvt fast, 2nd mvt slow, 3rd mvt really fast In the baroque period, instrumental music (non text-based) had to develop: ritornello form - contrasting themes of the soloist and the orchestra, focusing on the contrast between the two
variation form - successive, uninterrupted repetition of one clearly defined melodic unit with changes that rouse the listener's interest without ever losing touch with the original unit or them
ground bass - repeating figure of the bass
fugue - a polyphonic composition for a fixed number of instrumental lines or voices (3 or 4) built on a single principal theme.
Baroque dances (suites, gigue, binary form, french overture) - Collection of misc. dances, a fast dance in compound meter, a binary form AABB, dance suites often start with a French Overture, consists of two sharply contrasted sections arranged in ABA'
Instrumental music - more popular because of vastly improved instrument craftmanship (Stradivarius).
Vivaldi - many many many concertos, taught at orphanage (composing 2 concertos each month) 1678-1741, composed The Four Seasons
Bach - under-appreciated, lived in Germany, 1685-1750, talented organist, very musical family, 7 children with his cousin, 13 with his second wife (not cousin), Brandenburg Concertos (6), cantor of St. Thomas's Church, Leipzig, Germany. Never left Germany.
Harpsichord cadenza to the end (D and E) of Brandenburg - Bach
The Art of Fugue - Bach
Concerto in G, first movement - Vivaldi
Questions:
Briefly talk about the way movements work in concertos. (three movements, fast-slow-faster) What is ritornello form? contrasting themes of the soloist and the orchestra, focusing on the contrast between the two
What was the importance of the development in instrumental organization during the Baroque period, and why did it need to be developed? no text accompaniment, needed to provide listeners with a basis for following a piece, needed strategies to maintain the audience's attention during longer pieces Why did instrumental music became so much more popular during the Baroque period? improved instrument craftmanship (Stradivarius)
"an age of opulence, as inspired by the court of Louis XIV of France and driven by the new wealth of the middle classes"
Louis XIV, "the Sun King", was the longest reigning monarch in European history (1643-1715). Under his rule, French culture flowered, especially dance and music.
Louis XIV! (CRAZY HAIR)
Arts flourished and science broadened the understanding of the natural world. Religious conflict.
Revolution in England in 1648, which saw the trial and execution of the King and the abolition of monarchy and the House of Lords.
England was gaining lots of territory.
In 1618, the mounting tensions between the Protestants and Catholics launched the Thirty Years' War in Europe (fought principally in Germany, but involved most of the major European continental powers).
Pilgrims!
Science: Galileo Galilei discovered a number of natural laws and also invented the microscope, contructed a telescope, and observed the planets during this period, only to be later condemned by Rome for his views. His conflict with the Roman Catholic Church is taken as a major early example of the conflict of authority and freedom of thought, particularly with science, in Western society. Johannes Kepler engaged in the study of astronomy and developed the laws of planetary motion in 1609. Brilliant mathematicians such as Rene Descartes, Blaise Pascal, Pierre de Fermat and Isaac Newton developed the foundations for analytic geometry, probability, and integral calculus, while Robert Boyle discovered the laws of pressure.
Galileo!
In medical science, William Harvey studied the circulation of blood and the function of the heart. Physicians studied diabetes and scarlet fever, and developed a cure for scurvy. Meanwhile, Italian physician Santorio Santorii measured human body temperature with his invention, the thermometer. Other inventions of the period include the syringe, slide rule, barometer, wind gauge, pressure cooker, tuning fork, and steam engine.
The visual arts during the period were celebrated as never before, as individual patrons such as popes, kings, and emperors began commissioning masterpieces throughout Europe. Baroque painters include Michelangelo Merisi (Caravaggio), Annibale Carracci, and Rembrandt van Rijn. Also, a particular Baroque style of painting which arose in Rome in the 1620s culminated in the impressive painted ceilings and church decor of Pietro da Cortona, Guido Reni, and Il Guercino. Perhaps the most beloved Baroque architect and sculptor is Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini, who designed the "baldachin" (canopy) above the famed altar of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Baroque architecture emphasized monumentality, movement, dramatic spatial and lighting sequences, and a rich interior decoration using contrasting surface textures, vivid colors, and luxurious materials.
Literature of the Baroque style is epitomized in the writings of Giambattista Marino in Italy, Luis de Gongora in Spain, and Martin Opitz in Germany. English Metaphysical poetry, as popularized by John Donne, also emerged during this period. John Milton authored his famous epic poem, "Paradise Lost" in 1667 (which expressed an incredible amount of profound ideas).
John Milton!
Germany:
(1608) Establishment of the Protestant Union
(1609) Formation of the Catholic League
(1618-1648) Thirty Years' War
(1701) King of Prussia crowned
(1702-14) War of Spanish Succession
(1740) Frederick the Great crowned King of Prussia
(1740-42) The Silesian War
Frederick the Great!
Pilgrims!
CHAPTAH 9
concerto + concerto grosso: three movement piece for soloist and orchestra, 1st mvt fast, 2nd mvt slow, 3rd mvt really fast
In the baroque period, instrumental music (non text-based) had to develop:
ritornello form - contrasting themes of the soloist and the orchestra, focusing on the contrast between the two
variation form - successive, uninterrupted repetition of one clearly defined melodic unit with changes that rouse the listener's interest without ever losing touch with the original unit or them
ground bass - repeating figure of the bass
fugue - a polyphonic composition for a fixed number of instrumental lines or voices (3 or 4) built on a single principal theme.
Baroque dances (suites, gigue, binary form, french overture) - Collection of misc. dances, a fast dance in compound meter, a binary form AABB, dance suites often start with a French Overture, consists of two sharply contrasted sections arranged in ABA'
Instrumental music - more popular because of vastly improved instrument craftmanship (Stradivarius).
Vivaldi - many many many concertos, taught at orphanage (composing 2 concertos each month) 1678-1741, composed The Four Seasons
Bach - under-appreciated, lived in Germany, 1685-1750, talented organist, very musical family, 7 children with his cousin, 13 with his second wife (not cousin), Brandenburg Concertos (6), cantor of St. Thomas's Church, Leipzig, Germany. Never left Germany.
Harpsichord cadenza to the end (D and E) of Brandenburg - Bach
The Art of Fugue - Bach
Concerto in G, first movement - Vivaldi
Questions:
Briefly talk about the way movements work in concertos.
(three movements, fast-slow-faster)
What is ritornello form?
contrasting themes of the soloist and the orchestra, focusing on the contrast between the two
What was the importance of the development in instrumental organization during the Baroque period, and why did it need to be developed?
no text accompaniment, needed to provide listeners with a basis for following a piece, needed strategies to maintain the audience's attention during longer pieces
Why did instrumental music became so much more popular during the Baroque period?
improved instrument craftmanship (Stradivarius)